General: Whitestem Blazingstar (Mentzelia albicaulis) is a sparsely leaved, stiff hairy, upright annual forb with white stems and small, pale-yellow flowers. The flowers have five petals and many stamens. The overall plant from is variable, ranging from densely upright small shrubs to single, spindly stems with a few flowers.

There are a number of species of Blazingstar that can be hard to identify. In this species, the basal leaves are petioled and entire, while the cauline leaves are sessile and usually lobed. The flower petals are short (less than 8 mm long), and the flower bracts are narrow. The mature fruit is cylindrical, (more than 15 mm long and less than 4 mm wide), and slightly curved. In the distal part of the fruit, seeds are arranged in 3 rows.

Whitestem Blazingstar is a fairly common component of desert vegetation communities during the spring. It can be found on dry, well-drained sandy and gravelly desert flats, bajadas, and moderate slopes in the lower mountains in the Lower Sonora (Creosote-Bursage Flats) and Upper Sonoran (Mojave Desert Scrub) life zones.

Family: Loasa (Loasaceae).